


an offer in grog and Gold.

by ココダ - coco (arurun)



Series: dad I swear it's not my fault but [8]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, Pre-Canon, Rayleigh is tired, Roger wants Garp's kid
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-19
Updated: 2020-05-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:34:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24268264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arurun/pseuds/%E3%82%B3%E3%82%B3%E3%83%80%20-%20coco
Summary: Many, many years ago, a certain pirate meets a certain child at the shore. At the time, they were nothing but a rookie and a beginner, on opposing sides of the law."For the last time Roger. I am a MARINE."If fate had turned just a little to the left, perhaps there would have been one more child on board the Oro Jackson.
Series: dad I swear it's not my fault but [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1731370
Comments: 20
Kudos: 439





	an offer in grog and Gold.

Sitting down by the shore, Loto runs a damp cloth across the blade of his sword, carefully wiping off the blood. 

He grimaces at a stain on the ribbon. He’ll have to get that changed later…

“That was SO cool!” 

He flinches. Was he followed? Tossing aside the rag and swirling on the speaker, he stops short. 

Mainly because he didn’t expect to see a guy wearing a  _ straw hat _ , of all things. They’re not the most intimidating headwear, after all.

“The entire gang of them just crowded around you and you took them all out so easily!” the boy sparkles when he speaks, and his blond-haired companion sighs longsufferingly. “And they were bounty heads, right?”

“It’s impressive,” the blond one agrees, “how old are you, kid? Thirteen?”

Loto eases a little.

Maybe these guys are in their mid twenties, because they look like adults and act like kids. They don’t seem to have the fiercest intentions, but Loto is still wary. 

Because if there’s one thing Garp has taught him, it’s the fact that animals are the least of his problems in the jungle.

“Oh look what you’ve done, Roger. Now the kid’s all prickly and alert,” the blond one chastises, chopping the straw-hatted one (Roger?) on the head. 

Roger is apparently completely unaffected by that. 

His eyes are fixed on Loto (Loto holds his sword out before him because what are those eager-looking hands? Keep them away from me you pedophile) and Roger’s lips are pursed in the same way a child would look endearingly at a puppy at the side of the street. 

“Hey, you!” Roger says, “join my crew!”

_ Oh fuck no _ , he thinks, and “oh fuck, no!” he says.

The blond one is looking at him in a way that just reads ‘oh, not again’, and Roger, pretending to be a deaf asshole  _ because he is _ , runs right past the sword when Loto is distracted, and scoops him right up into a hug.

“You’re mine now! Let’s go back to the ship then!”

Loto shrieks.

-

Crocus stares at them.

“ _ What did you do _ .”

Roger is beaming, bite marks all over and bleeding from a number of scratches. Rayleigh is looking away, entirely unharmed, fidgeting in the manner that just screams ‘not my fault’. 

Behind Crocus, the other crewmates are freaking the hell out. Someone’s screaming for a doctor. Someone’s shaking Crocus dramatically because he’s the doctor.

“We caught a stray dog, but he ran away!” Roger declares happily.

Rayleigh is still looking away, denying responsibility.

Crocus is tired now. Why did he agree to coming on this ship again?

“Did that puppy have his shots?” Crocus asks instead. 

Roger’s still grinning really brightly despite losing said puppy, but he climbs onto the ship easily, Rayleigh behind him.

“Dunno!” then Roger shows them something in his hand. “But I got a fingernail so let’s make a Vivre Card for him!”

Crocus wonders if this is a violation of human rights.

-

Spoiler alert, it is, and Garp hates it. He notices the card one day and talks happened and then he found out and, well, what happened next was not pretty.

Spoiler alert number two, Roger doesn’t care.

Spoiler alert once again, Buggy is traumatized.

_ “I’m NOT letting the outlaws steal my OTHER kid too! Dammit!” _

_ “Hey, just because you told Dragon to go for his own justice, and he DID, doesn’t mean you automatically get helicopter ownership of this one too!” _

_ “Oh you wanna bet Roger? I’ll show you helicopter ownership!” _

_ “Holy crap, Garp’s throwing helicopters at us! Captain please shut up! Please shut up!” _

_ “Ray-san! Buggy just got chopped in half!” _

_ “He’ll be fine, he has that devil fruit and everything.” _

_ “NO HE IS NOT” _

-

“Oh heyy! Loreto, nice to see you again.”

The third time they met, it’s on Sabaody Archipelago. The boy is finally tall enough to strap the nodachi to his belt instead of his back, though it still trails.  His hair is long and straight, a strange thing to see among Marine boys.

He turns around. “If you try anything, I’m gonna scream ‘pervert’,” he immediately warns, because he doesn’t need to look to see who it is.

Roger bursts into laughter. Rayleigh looks as apologetic as the previous two times.

Beside them, wearing Roger’s infamous straw hat, is a red-haired child and a blue-haired clown.  They’re younger than Loreto, by at least half a dozen years.

Loto takes one look at them and turns to Rayleigh, “I probably  _ should _ yell.”

Rayleigh says, “no.”

Loto deflates. “Okay then.”

Roger balks, “you listen to Rayleigh but I get an immediate social death threat?” he whines, though there’s more childish chiding than actual heat.

Loto makes a show of rolling his eyes.

“I’m not joining your crew,” he says, “I’m getting promoted to Captain next week, so I’ll have my own ship to sail.”

Roger lets that register for a moment. “Dude, you’re like, fourteen and you’re a Captain? Even Garp became a Captain when he was seventeen or something, and he broke the world record.”

“I’m turning eighteen soon.”

“What?” this time Rayleigh says it too. “But you’re shorter than Buggy.”

“Yeah, I broke my spine a few times. That tends to stunt your growth.”

“You  _ what _ .”

Loto rolls his eyes. “Can I go now?’ He doesn’t wait for an answer, he just walks away.

“What? No, no no. You’re eighteen. That means you can drink. We’re gonna go drink,” Roger grabs him by the shoulder and Loto almost screams before Roger clamps his mouth shut, “we’re gonna celebrate! Our brat is a Captain!”

_ I am NOT your brat _ goes muffled under Roger’s hand, and this time Roger dodges before he’s bitten. Loto scowls.

Loto is dragged off to Shakky’s rip-off bar, takes his alcohol, and grumbles a hangover excuse when Commodore Dante asks where the fuck he’s been.

Like, what do they want him to do, fight Roger? Sounds like a pain in the ass.

-

“Y’know, Lor’to,” Roger drawls, absolutely drunk, “one day m’gonna be amaaazing and  _ you _ ,” he pokes Loto with his mug, “ _ you _ are gonna regret saying no to me. Mee! Of all people! When I first asked you to join, you said no! And you bit me a few times.”

Loto is honestly more interested in his booze.

“In your dreams, Gold,” he says.

“It’s Gol D.!” Roger whines, “ oh wait, they sound the same.” He hiccups. “Anyways Lor’to--”

“Pronounce the  _ re _ or don’t pronounce it at all,” Loto groans.

“Then  _ Loto _ ,” Roger corrects cheekily, “join my crew?”

Loto socks him in the face, “I said no!”

-

A few years later, staring out to sea with a few to many kids on board, Loto faintly wonders if he should have said yes.


End file.
